The Department of Homeland Security says a widespread privacy issue potentially compromised people’s personal information, ranging from Social Security numbers to phone numbers and addresses.Around 247,000 current and former Homeland Security workers as well as people connected with DHS Office of Inspector General investigations from 2002 to 2014 are considered at risk.Individuals affected are being offered free identity-protection services for 18 months at no cost to them.The incident came after officials say they learned a former DHS Office of Inspector General employee had an unauthorized copy of the office’s investigative case management system.The issue did not arise from a cyberattack by external actors, and the personal information exposed was not the primary target of the incident, Homeland Security officials say.According to the department, it has implemented precautions to further secure its system.